Improvement in knob-latches



w. r. MUNGER, or BRANroRn, Assi@ on To P. coRBIN AND F.

CORBIN, OF NEW BRITAIN, CONNECTICUT.

Letters Patent No. 83,652, lated November 3, 1868.

v IMPROVEMENT IN KNOB-LATCHES.

The Schedule referred to in these Letters Patent and making pari: of the same.

To `all 'whom 'it may concern Beit known that I, W. T. MUNGER, of Branford, in

-the county of New Haven, and State of Connecticut, have invented and made a certain new and useful Improvement in Locks; and I do hereby declare the following to be a full, clear, and exact description of the said invention, reference being had to the annexed drawing, making` part of this specification, wherein- Figure 1 is nelevation ofthe said lock, with the capplate removeclv;

i-gurev 2 is a view ofthe exterior of said cap-plate; an l Figure 3 is a section of the cap-plate, at the line x a'. Similar marks of yreference denote the same parts. This invention consists in a lever-arm extending from the hub of the spindle, in combination with a suspending-link that is connected with the inner end of the latch, and has upon it pins, against which said lever operates, when the handle is tluned in either direction. By this construction, the latch is operated by a small movement of the handle, and the horse-shoes,

` and similar connections of the spindle-hub with the latch, are `dispensed with, and at the same time I am enabled to place the spindle and handle some distance from the key-hole, and still have the latch itself near the bolt on the face of the lock.

In the drawing, a is th lock-case, of ordinary character; b is .the bolt, ando the tumbler; d is the keyhole; cis the latch, jointed at its inner end tothe link f, that swings onv the fulcrum t', and is operated on by a spring, g, of any suitablecharacter, to project the latch e.

Upon the link j' are two pins, or projections, 2 and 3, one on each side Iof the fulcrum t', and h is a lever-arm extending from the spindle-hub 7c below the pin 3, and above the pin 2.

It will now be seen that, if the handle is turned in one direction, the latch will be drawn back by the leverarm h, acting downwards upon the pin 2, and, if turned Vthe other way, said lever-arm h acts -upwards against the pin 3, producing the same movement ofthe link j' and latch, and the parts can be so proportioned as to obtain the withdrawing-movement of the latch, by the desired amount of movement of the handle.

The joint between the latch e and link f is made by a rounded head, 4, upon the circular shank of the bolt, one side of which sets into a recess 'or mortise at the lower end of the link f, and behind said head 4 is the projection 5, that acts against the latch in forcing it forwards, and the head 4 is kept into said recess by the inner surface of the cap-plate It', and in order to make the latch reversible, I provide an opening at l, (shown by red 'lines in iig. 1,) in said cap-plate k', that allows the head 4 to be raised from its recess, and the' latch drawn forward sufficiently to allow the square base of the inclined end to be turned around in front of the face of the lock.

The projections 6 6 prevent the latch being drawn out ofthe lock when it is being turned. v

In order to cover up the opening l, and retain the latch in position when properly placed, I employ the sliding plate n, that occupies a recess in the back of the cap-plate k', and is extended through the opening l, and turned back as shown, so as to hold the plate nto place on the cap la. This portionof the platen can be acted up to move the entire plate, and cover up the inside of the opening l, without taking off the cap-plate,I and thereby retain the head 4 in its recess in the swinging link f, or its equivalent.Y

What I claim, and desire to secure by Letters Patent is The swinging link f, jointed to the latch e, in combination with the project-ions 2 and 3, and lever-arm h, from the spindle-hub 7a, substantially as and for the p'urposes specified.

In witness whereof, I have hereunto set my signature, this 29th day of April, A. D. 1868.

W. T. MUNGER. Witnesses:

' CHARLES PECK,

EDwD. L. Pinon. 

